(I) Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to pulp mold technology for packaging articles and more specifically to a pulp mold for positioning and cushioning an article, and a molding means for manufacturing the pulp mold.
(II) Description of the Prior Art
Conventional packaging materials, such as those used to hold agricultural products or food, e.g., fruits, eggs. cans or fresh meat, or industrial products, e.g., computer parts, electronic components, electrical appliances and porcelain products, are usually made of polylone or EPE foam materials. As is well know, these materials are bulky, highly flammable and spontaneously combustible, un-degradable, toxical and non-recyclable, and thus cause significant problems to environmental protection. EPE foam material contains CFC which is known to be detrimental to the ozone of the atmosphere and is even worse to the earth""s environment.
To overcome the disadvantages of the conventional packaging materials, most developed countries that have long engaged in environment protection waste no effort in finding substitutes and are increasingly using more and more pulp mold packaging materials. Since the raw material of pulp molds comes from recycled paper and is free from tree felling, the pulp molds are fully suitable in view of the growing environmental concerns. Compared to the conventional polylone and EPE foam materials, the pulp mold materials require less space and will not generate toxicant substances while burning. The fibrous contents of the pulp mold materials are capable of absorbing humidity. Furthermore, the pulp mold materials are not spontaneously combustible.
However, the existing pulp mold materials are designed to hold or support articles only. Specifically, they only function to position articles and provide no cushioning effect to the packaged articles. That is, the conventional pulp mold materials cannot minimize damages to the packaged articles due to collision or impact during shipping.
The inventor improves the design of the original application to provide better positioning and cushioning effects. According to the structure of the original application, the invention has corrugated surfaces to simulate the effect of spring for performing the best effect of the pulp mold. Previously, the conventional molding devices for making pulp molds could only be used for a specific design. When the article were no longer manufactured, the molding means could not be used. It was necessary to redesign a new molding means suitable for the new product.
One objective of the invention is to improve the cushioning effect of the original application.
A second objective of the invention is to provide a pulp mold comprising plurality of units. Each unit comprises plurality of higher and lower surfaces such that the pulp mold has a plurality of corrugated surfaces to provide a plurality of cushions.
Another objective of the invention is to provide a pulp mold that can adjust the number of units according to the weight and size of the article.
And a further objective of the invention is to provide the pulp mold molding unit means which can be constructed for suitable to the various articles. When the articles are no longer manufactured, the molding unit means can be re-constructed to be suitable for another product.
An objective of the invention is to provide a set of molding means comprising a plurality of molding unit means such that the number of the upper and lower molding unit means can be adjusted to produce various sizes of pulp mold suitable for various articles.
An objective of the invention is to provide a method for manufacturing the pulp mold. The existent molding unit means can be used to produce various sizes of pulp mold suitable for the various articles. It is not necessary to develop a new molding means.